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OGCI Invests in a Diverse Set of Technologies Designed to Reduce Emissions 297

The Oil and Gas Climate Initiative is a collaboration of 10 major oil and gas companies that together produce one-fourth of the world’s oil and gas output. Photo Shutterstock/Unikyluckk

The Oil and Gas Climate Initiative is advancing efforts to develop and commercialize technologies that reduce greenhouse gas emissions in some unexpected areas.

The voluntary organization of 10 major international oil and gas producers has finalized the first three investments of its billion-dollar investment fund, OGCI Climate Investments, to fund three low-emission technology projects.

The projects, the first in a host of planned investments, seek to make more efficient engines, reduce the environmental impacts of cement, and demonstrate the commercial viability of carbon capture and storage at a gas-fired power plant.

“OGCI Climate Investments’ goal is to deliver GHG reductions by investing in pre-commercial technologies and solutions that are both cost-effective and will scale globally,” explained OGCI Climate Investments Chief Executive Officer Pratima Rangarajan.

The group also has the unique ability to deploy the technologies in the operations of its member companies to amplify the scale an impact of its initial investments.

Promising technologies

The investments include US-based cement and concrete production company Solidia Technologies, which has patented a technology that facilitates the production of cement in a way that generates fewer emissions and uses CO2 rather than water to cure concrete.

OGCI says Solidia’s technology has the potential to lower the carbon footprint of concrete by up to 70% and water consumption by up to 80%. The project is also expected to demonstrate how carbon dioxide can be commercially re-used in an environmentally sound way.

In the OGCI report Catalyst for Change, the organization notes that the conversion of captured carbon dioxide into useable products can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions in specific sectors. In fact, the report notes that OGCI is looking to “invest in a range of companies that have developed innovative and commercially viable carbon utilization technologies.”

Another recipient of OGCI funding is Achates Power, a company that is developing high-efficiency opposed-piston engines that have the potential to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions produced by vehicles. Achates Power plans to use the funds to accelerate the deployment of its technology across the globe alongside a broad consortium of engine makers.

The third project aims to design the world’s first full-scale natural gas power plant with carbon capture and storage, including industrial CO2 sequestration capability. OGCI Climate Investments has acquired the concept for a project in the UK and plans to work with the project team on a commercially viable concept and basic engineering design that can receive government support and attract private sector investors.

The project would also “enable neighboring energy-intensive industries to leverage the carbon dioxide transport and storage network that would be developed. This way, they too would be able to eliminate a large share of carbon dioxide from their operations,” OGCI said it its report.

The project could also advance the UK’s plans to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to 80% of baseline 1990 levels by 2050.

The driving force behind OGCI

Together, OGCI’s 10 member companies claim to account for more than one-fourth of global oil and gas production. Their efforts demonstrate a commitment by these top producers – which include several national oil companies – to lessen the environmental impact of fossil fuels and collaborate on actions to reduce emissions.

The roster of members includes BP, China National Petroleum Corp., Eni, Pemex, Repsol, Saudi Aramco, Shell, Statoil and Total. An eleventh member, Brazil’s Petrobras, is set to formally join the group soon.

By collaborating thorough OGCI, the producers aim to be a catalyst for across the oil and gas industry and beyond. Since they produce so much of the world’s energy, the report says that makes them “important players in ensuring the supply of reliable and affordable energy, and gives us the opportunity to advance the transition to a low-emissions future.”

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